Scientists have tracked down previously undiscovered colonies of Antarctic emperor penguins after spotting trails of their droppings on satellite pictures, a study said last week.
Zooming in on individual penguins is beyond current satellite imagery, but the tell-tale reddish-brown stains on the polar ice helped home in on large groups of the black and white flightless birds.
Mapping expert Peter Fretwell of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) said the poop trail helps to track movements of the penguins, which in turn helps to monitor how they respond to climate change.
“We can’t see actual penguins on the satellite maps because the resolution isn’t good enough. But during the breeding season the birds stay at a colony for eight months,” he said.
“The ice gets pretty dirty and it’s the guano stains that we can see,” he added.
The penguins spend much of their lives at sea, but return to their colonies to breed during the Antarctic winter. Scientists managed to identify 38 colonies, including 10 new ones, according to the research published in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography.
“This is a very exciting development,” said BAS penguin ecologist Phil Trathan. “Now we know exactly where the penguins are, the next step will be to count each colony so we can get a much better picture of population size.
“Using satellite images combined with counts of penguin numbers puts us in a much better position to monitor future population changes over time.”(AFP)
上週有一項研究指出，科學家從衛星空照圖中發現南極國王企鵝的糞痕，並進而追蹤到先前未曾發現的企鵝棲息地。
目前衛星圖像科技仍無法放大觀看個別的企鵝，不過這些出現在極地冰上可供辨認的紅棕色污點，有助於找出這群黑白毛色又不會飛的鳥類。
英國南極觀測站的地圖製圖專家彼得．佛雷威爾說，追蹤糞便有助於他們了解這些企鵝的行動，並進而監控牠們對氣候變遷的反應。
他說：「因為衛星圖的解析度不夠，所以我們無法真正觀測到企鵝。但在繁殖季節，這些企鵝會在棲息地停留八個月。」
他還說：「冰面會變得很髒，那就是我們看到的鳥糞。」
南極國王企鵝多生活在海上，但冬天時會回到棲息地繁殖。《全球生態暨生物地理學》期刊刊載的研究指出，科學家找出三十八個牠們的棲息地，其中有十個新發現的地點。
英國南極觀測站的企鵝生態學者菲爾．崔森說：「這是一項很令人興奮的發現。現在我們確知企鵝的位置，下一步就是計算出每個棲息地的企鵝數量，如此一來，我們就能對企鵝族群的大小有更清楚的概念。」
「利用衛星圖結合企鵝數量，更有助於我們未來觀測企鵝數量的變遷。」（法新社�翻譯：袁星塵）
If you’ve recently spotted adults parading around with cuddly toys dangling from their designer handbags, your eyes haven’t been deceiving you. The playful trend of adorning bags with cute charms has become popular among people of various ages. Plushies like Labubu and anime and manga characters such as Chiikawa have become must-have accessories that make personal statements. The practice of attaching charms to personal items has been common across cultures throughout history. In ancient civilizations, charms were often used as symbols of protection, good luck, or identity. Fast-forward to more modern times, and style icons like Jane Birkin, a
★ Bilingual Story is a fictionalized account. 雙語故事部分內容純屬虛構。 Kevin leaned over the bubbling pot. “Hey. . . are you okay? You’ve barely touched your food.” Zoey blinked. Her face was red — not from blushing, but from the “mala” spice and the heat of the room. Her blond hair clumped to her face like strands of fine spaghetti. Her carefully applied makeup now streaked. “This isn’t what I expected,” she said softly, forcing a smile. All around them, Kevin’s friends were laughing, shouting, and tossing ingredients into the broth. The air smelled of chili oil and garlic.
Picture this: contestants are walking gracefully across a stage, competing for the highly desired title of “most beautiful.” However, these participants aren’t fashion models—they’re camels. Welcome to the extraordinary world of the Pushkar Fair, where beauty contests take on an entirely different meaning. The Pushkar Fair is held annually in the small desert town of Pushkar, India, usually in November. It began as a livestock trading event where farmers and herders gathered to buy and sell camels, horses and cattle. Over time, it has grown into a major cultural carnival that attracts thousands of tourists from around the world.
Continued from yesterday（延續自昨日） https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang If plushie charms are cute little nods to people’s interests, ita bags are full-on declarations. The term “ita” comes from the Japanese word itai, which means “painful” and reflects the overwhelming visual intensity of these bags. An ita bag is essentially a handbag, backpack, or tote meticulously decorated with an extensive collection of merchandise dedicated to a specific character or idol. These bags usually feature a clear plastic window to display carefully arranged pins, badges, keychains, or fan art. Both the interior and exterior may be covered in fandom memorabilia, creating an aesthetic so intense that it’s almost “painful”
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